Evaluating the impact of virtual reality on student engagement and conceptual understanding in engineering education

• A theory-driven VR application exhibits significant user acceptability in engineering education, with good evaluations for usability, engagement, and perceived educational value. • The explicit integration of constructivism and self-determination theory offers a reproducible paradigm for educational virtual reality design, connecting gamification and artificial intelligence guidance to known learning principles. • Comprehensive user experience data from 43 engineering students indicates favorable technology acceptance and significant perceived utility in comprehending intricate mechanical principles. • Comprehensive technical documentation and methodological clarity rectify reproducibility deficiencies in educational VR research, facilitating subsequent replication and comparative investigations. • Although students indicate significant engagement and perceived learning, the study highlights the necessity for controlled trials employing objective metrics to ascertain educational success. • The research offers fundamental data endorsing the possibility of VR as an ancillary tool, while recognizing the accessibility and cost factors for wider use. This study evaluates a custom-built virtual reality (VR) application for teaching the crank-slider mechanism in engineering education. The VR environment, developed in Unreal Engine, was structured into three scaffolded phases (introductory, educational, and free exploration) and integrated gamification and AI voice guidance. A quantitative study with 43 undergraduate students revealed significant improvements in key perceptions of VR technology. Ease of use showed a substantial increase (12 % improvement, p = 0.001 , Cohen’s d z = 0.55 ), moving from marginal to positive usability. Accessibility also improved significantly (11 % increase, p = 0.004 , d z = 0.46 ), though it remained the primary challenge. Participants rated the VR lessons as highly captivating ( M = 4.84 / 5.00 ) and useful for education ( M = 4.81 / 5.00 ), with perceptions of VR’s innovativeness and educational value converging at a high level ( M P o s t = 4.81 ). These findings provide preliminary evidence of VR’s potential to enhance student engagement and reduce technological barriers in engineering education. For broader uptake, future work must address the persistent financial and accessibility challenges.